File photo dated 02/10/13 of an iPhone lock screen, as Apple may not be forced to help the FBI unlock the iPhone of a terror suspect after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) asked for a delay on a court hearing so it could test a hack on the phone supplied by an "outside party". PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Tuesday March 22, 2016. The request from the DOJ came just hours after Apple chief Tim Cook had used a product launch at the company’s headquarters to reiterate the firm’s stance that rewriting its software so encrypted parts of it could be accessed by authorities violated customer privacy. See PA story TECHNOLOGY Apple. Photo credit should read: Steve Parsons/PA Wire